Gifts for your room attendant?

Hey guys, I know that these people work really hard and I was wondering if you have ever given your state room attendant a gift. I was thinking like a small international calling card or an iTunes card. I would obviously still tip the regular amount or more, but I was just curious. Do you know of anything they need that they have a hard time getting? Thanks!

Special Green paper with pictures of dead USA presidents printed on it. :D

Special Green paper with pictures of dead USA presidents printed on it. :D

You beat me to it. ;) Nothing is so "usable" as cash......

Special Green paper with pictures of dead USA presidents printed on it. :D

I agree. That way if there is anything that they really need they can purchase it for themselves. Otherwise it is hard to tell whether or not they will really need or can even use things that you think are appropriate. :)

Special Green paper with pictures of dead USA presidents printed on it. :D

LMAO....I was going to say the same things but not in those exact words...your choice of wording is much better! I love it. :D

Yes, skip the gift, give them cash!!! My goodness they have little tiny living spaces so not a lot of room for knick knacks and if they want or need a phone card they will buy one. Give em money! :D

Do what you do when you dine out at home, leave them a tip. When's the last time you brought a gift to your waiter in a restaurant?

We did the gift bag thing on one of our cruises after finding out that others do it. Filled it with useful things. Our room steward did NOT seem to appreciate it, but did take it. That was the first and last time. All of the others are right, just give cash above and beyond the tip.:)

Hey guys, I know that these people work really hard and I was wondering if you have ever given your state room attendant a gift. I was thinking like a small international calling card or an iTunes card. I would obviously still tip the regular amount or more, but I was just curious. Do you know of anything they need that they have a hard time getting? Thanks!

We always like to leave our room attendant something nice including an extra tip. Of course if its a he, he usually sees my wife in her birthday suit every once in a while if we have a balcony room. :eek:

We did the gift bag thing on one of our cruises after finding out that others do it. Filled it with useful things. Our room steward did NOT seem to appreciate it, but did take it. That was the first and last time. All of the others are right, just give cash above and beyond the tip.:)

Your story reminds me of something my MIL said this past year. She has been really ill and in ICU, open heart surgery, etc. (you get the drift). Anyway, when returning home after one of the more serious pouts, a church group visited and brought a "gift" for her. She and FIL had just moved into an assisted living facility due to all the health issues.

Anyway, it was a HUGE laundry basket full of useful items. Parper towels, TP, shampoos, soaps, lotions, shaving supplies, mints, snacks, reading material, etc. It was WONDERFUL - and would save them from needing any grocery runs for personal items for several weeks.

Well, my MIL's comment (and this is a very dear woman usually) was, "What do the think we are - destitute?!? We can still afford our own soap!" :eek: She was truly offended. Sigh..... :)

So the moral of the story.......... gifts don't always mean the same thing to the recipient as they do to the giver. ;)

I agree cash is best. But our last cruise we brought funny gag style gifts for our waiter and assist. waiter. They absolutley loved them! We brought things like fake glasses with eye balls in them, a monkey with hands and feet that stuck to the window, and small magic trick box. We gave good tips too but the gifts felt a bit more personal.:)

Special Green paper with pictures of dead USA presidents printed on it. :D

LOL!!! You betcha!!

So the moral of the story.......... gifts don't always mean the same thing to the recipient as they do to the giver. ;)

I agree 100%!

Years ago I gave a co-worker a lovely fragrance gift set, it had body lotion, shampoo, body powder, de-odorant, perfume, soaps, bath salts....all in this wonderful fragrance that I knew she liked.

I overheard her say to another co-worker that she thought it was rude of me to give her de-odorant and that I must have thought she had a body odor problem.

I was so upset....of all the items in this expensive gift set and she only saw the de-ordorant?! All these years ago and I have never forgotten that!

So I do agree that one person looks at something one way and others sees it another.

Cash is best.

Last May we were on the Serenade 14 day Alaska trip .. our first stop was Seattle and as many of you know .. the beautiful Flower Market. Our cabin attendent was a wonderful young lady .. so I brought her back a very nice bouquet of flowers in a nice vase. (I also brought one for ourselves. ) She loved the flowers and everyday she told me how much she and her roomate loved the flowers. She kept the vase (and I also left the vase that we used) so she could "refill" it and she would have one for future passengers who brought back flowers but forgot to get a vase!

BTW - We also tipped her with cash money . .. both at the beginning and end of the cruise!

;)On our last cruise, we brought New York Yankee baseball hats for the waiter and the assistant waiter. They loved them, and wore them the rest of the night in the dining room. Trying to think of something to bring this time, June. madmarti

you dont know if the server has a telephone at home-- or if they have an ipod for an ITunes gift card.

They know where to get the best deal on phone cards if they make calls home.

IF you want to do soemthing extra-- take a disposable camera-- take their pictures all week-- get it developed on board-- then give them their pictures in a thank you card- they can it turn send the pics home to their family.

Less to pack & rack your brain over! I agree green with numbers on it is the way to go.

If you've seen an inside cabin, the staff shares cabins that are SMALLER than the passenger cabins. They don't have room for "stuff"!

Cash is king---and they do appreciate that!

Money always works. We usually tip our attendant the first day and then at the end of our cruise we give them whatever's leftover of our spending cash. I think we had about $52 left in our pocket on our last cruise and we just thanked our attendant for taking good care of us and my hubby gave him the "special hand shake." ;)

;)On our last cruise, we brought New York Yankee baseball hats for the waiter and the assistant waiter. They loved them, and wore them the rest of the night in the dining room. Trying to think of something to bring this time, June. madmarti

Some might not especially care for your choice of ball caps.:rolleyes: A waiter from the Dominican Republic might prefer one representing the team of one of his hometown heroes, like Pedro Martinez or David Ortiz.;) They may also feel the way about ball caps that many RCI frequent cruisers feel about the C&A gift caps - enough already. The person who wrote that those who receive gifts sometimes have a different view of the gifts than the donor intended is right on. Cash is perhaps a little less "cute" but a whole lot more useful and appreciated.

I love getting and giving!! So, I pack a few extra goodies and I give them as an extra gift everyday. Just as I look forward to a surprise in my room, so do they!! Here are a few of the things I include:

1. Samples that I get in the mail (dryer sheets, tea bags, etc.)

2. Small stationary sets to write home with

3. Avon samples (I have a neighbor and I usually buy samples from her for traveling) body washes, perfume, lipsticks

4. Lip gloss, chap stick

5. A magnet from something personal, hometown or business related for them to use

6. Special candies that remind me of my childhood. I usually get these from the dollar store where they have an excellent selection.

I think it is the thought that counts!! A really sweet note along with the tipping envelope. But when it all comes down to it, we are human. Yes, money can make the difference but a sincere heartfelt "Thanks, I appreciate you" is worth more than we give credit for!!

Happy cruising everyone!!

I love getting and giving!! So, I pack a few extra goodies and I give them as an extra gift everyday. Just as I look forward to a surprise in my room, so do they!! Here are a few of the things I include:

 

1. Samples that I get in the mail (dryer sheets, tea bags, etc.)

2. Small stationary sets to write home with

3. Avon samples (I have a neighbor and I usually buy samples from her for traveling) body washes, perfume, lipsticks

4. Lip gloss, chap stick

5. A magnet from something personal, hometown or business related for them to use

6. Special candies that remind me of my childhood. I usually get these from the dollar store where they have an excellent selection

 

I think it is the thought that counts!! A really sweet note along with the tipping envelope. But when it all comes down to it, we are human. Yes, money can make the difference but a sincere heartfelt "Thanks, I appreciate you" is worth more than we give credit for!!

 

 

Happy cruising everyone!!

And if you have read the previous posts which mention the limited personal space that the crew has available to them where do you expect them to store those daily gifts? Individually your gifts may not be a problem but similar gifts coming from all that they serve during a cruise could be overwhelming. Not to mention the possibility that they may have allergies that preclude them from using some of those scents, lip gloss etc. or a medical condition such as diabetes that doesn't allow them to enjoy those "special candies". The thought is wonderful but the gifts may not be as appreciated as you want to believe. That said, I fully agree that a sincere and heartfelt thank you is priceless.

Our last crusie (which was our second) I brought a tin of the Old Salem Cookies from NC (we live about 2 hours from there). I gave them to our room steward the when we met her. I thought she might like something different that she couldn't get at any of her ports. She was thrilled and said she would save them to share with her daughter when she goes home in a few weeks. Needless to say, I felt good and she sure seemed to appreciate it.

Erika

I know everyone means well with all their gifts. And I have really been impressed with the creativity some of them show. :) I know we all are greatful for the good service we receive - and want to thank those that have provided that service and made our cruise special.

However, when you think of the countries that many of these workers come from, the couple of dollars that go into these gifts could be $$ that the crew could use for things that are much more meaningful to them.

What if I spend $5 on some odds and ends. And they are things that the crew member really doesn't need right now. Meanwhile, they have a sick parent or child at home. That $5 could go a long way at home to provide meds or medical care to their family member.

And even if there is no problem at home, I figure the crew would rather decide for themselves whether to use that $5 on a food item or a clothing item or phone minutes or whatever......

Just a thought.

Just about every day I leave $2 with a "thank you" note for something nice they have done like keeping my cooler filled with ice, the cute towel animal, fulfilled a request I had or just for keeping the cabin so nice. I, also, leave a piece of candy either from a snack size bag or Russell Stover individually wrapped holiday candy. Yes, they may be diabetic and cannot eat it but they still have the bucks and I'm sure they can find a friend who would like the candy. What is funny is that they will stop me in the hall and tell me how much they liked the candy but never mention the bucks (lol).

I have, also, asked them if there is anything special in town I could pick up for them when in a port if I know I am going shopping. They have a store on the ship but I understand the prices are not exactly WalMart. If there is something they would like me to get, it is usually shampoo or toothpaste or something along those lines that they need and are appreciative that I am getting it for them. More than once have tried to give me money to pay for it. Note when the crew comes back from shore leave they are loaded down with WalMart bags.

Tucker in Texas

I gave our cabin attendant a small cheap picture frame when I first met him. He left and came back with 2 robes. The next night he left a bottle of wine in an ice bucket. Now I take a small little gift every time. I guess some of the attendants appreciate it and some don't.